The Growing Threat to Air Force Mission-Critical Electronics

by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Intelligence Community Studies Board, Air Force Studies Board, Committee on a Strategy for Acquiring Secure and Reliable Electronic Components for Air Force Weapon Systems

2019 · National Academies Press

High-performance electronics are key to the U.S. Air Force's (USAF's) ability to deliver lethal effects at the time and location of their choosing. Additionally, these electronic systems must be able to withstand not only the rigors of the battlefield but be able to perform the needed mission while under cyber and electronic warfare (EW) attack. This requires a high degree of assurance that they are both physically reliable and resistant to adversary actions throughout their life cycle from design to sustainment. In 2016, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop titled Optimizing the Air Force Acquisition Strategy of Secure and Reliable Electronic Components, and released a summary of the workshop. This publication serves as a follow-on to provide recommendations to the USAF acquisition community.